1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a molecular assembly.
2. Related Background Art
Polymer materials are widely used as general purpose materials and functional materials, including plastics, films, fibers, rubber or coating materials. Crosslinking of polymers by covalent bonds is important for improving the properties of such polymers, such as their strength, heat resistance and recovery from deformation. Such polymer crosslinking has conventionally been carried out with the aim of achieving improved mechanical properties (for example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-239358 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-216845), but in recent years there has been increasing interest in the use of crosslinking reactions with the goal of developing functional materials known as “topological gels” that employ polyrotaxane (for example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2005-320392).